Rain spoils fun, adds to romance

City florists complained about dipping sales as compared to last year.

Chandigrah |
Published:February 15, 2014 4:44 am

The Chandigarh Police made special arrangements for Valentine’s Day on Friday.

By Ankush Khurana, Geetika Jaiswal

Rain played spoiltsport for some city residents on Valentine’s day, but for others it only added to the romance. City florists complained about dipping sales as compared to last year.

Talking to Newsline, Rajesh, a florist in Sector 34 said, “We have reduced prices of bouquets as not many people were coming because of the rain. We thought we would have a good sale today (on Friday) but our expectations were belied”.

Similar was the situation for those selling heart-shaped balloons across the city. Due to the rain, not many people opted for the usual spots like Rose Garden and other parks. Most couples opted to stay indoors, spelling good business for restaurants.

Barbeque Nation, in Sector 26 presented a ‘My valentine, My recipe’ offer. Mohit Khatri, sales manager at the restaurant, said, “We offered rose buds and chocolate cakes for couples who came in for lunch. Around 20 persons made special mocktail for their valentines”. Ravinder Kothari, restaurant manager at Brooklyn Central, said, “We offered three ‘Unforgettable Experience’ buffet options for the couples to choose from. Moon Dog, a Chandigarh-based band, performed in the evening”.

Aman Kaur, a student of Department of Physics (PU), said, “Rain is a secondary thing when you are with your special one. There are many ways to celebrate this day. For me, rain was an add on”. Personalised gifts photo lamps, photo tiles, love meters, gold and silver roses were among the hot picks this year. Heart-shaped cakes, chocolates, cookies with love messages and blooming flowers were also in demand.

Police up security on day of love
The Chandigarh Police made special arrangements for Valentine’s Day on Friday. Though police upped security, not many people ventured out. As many as 1,400 police personnel were deputed at 70 locations in the city. In the morning, the police laid nakas from 8 am to 3.30 pm on the gehri route (inner roads of Sector 7, 8, 9, 10 and 11) and other busy streets.

The traffic police laid 18 nakas near the Government College for Girls (GCG) in Sector 11, GCG in Sector 42, MCM DAV College for Women in Sector 36 and Panjab University. From 6 pm to 9 pm, police personnel could be seen near hotels, restaurants, discotheques and other party venues.

Around 21 persons were challaned for various traffic violations on Friday as compared to 322 persons last year.

“The number of police personnel on Valentine’s Day were increased in the university and outside colleges. But the rush of students is not as much this year,” said Inspector Malkit Singh, SHO) at the Sector 11 police station. He added that most students living in hostels went home to enjoy an extended weekend.

Women personnel deployed at PU girls’ hostels
Unlike the last few years, Panjab University (PU) did not place many restrictions on female students staying in hostels.
Women security personnel were deployed in all girls’ hostels with gates for these hostels remaining closed for four-wheelers. However, no restrictions were placed on the movement of the residents.
Talking about the security arrangements, Dean Student Welfare (DSW) Professor Navdeep Goyal said, “Since it is a holiday there were not many students on the campus. There was no need to place any restrictions in hostels but we kept a check on the entry of boys”.